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Our Mentors
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Ranjit Singh

Ranjit, has over 30 years of experience in Industrial Management in Indian, International and Multicultural business environment. His core strengths include Corporate Growth and Turnaround Strategy and its implementation. He worked as Managing Director, Kalpataru Power Transmission(an Infrastructure Company) and Global COO & Board member of Polyplex Corporation Limited (4th Largest Polyester Film manufacturer in World). As a transformational leader he was significantly responsible for globalization and profitable growth of the companies that he led. He is a BE (Mechanical) from BITS Pilani and an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad. Ranjit is now based in Delhi and is deeply involved in the Start-up ecosystem and Strategy advisory space.

Prajakt Raut

Prajakt Raut Co-founder - Applyifi and The Growth Labs

Prajakt is an entrepreneur, mentor and entrepreneurship evangelist. His personal goal in life is to encourage and assist a 100,000 people to become entrepreneurs. He blogs on “The Hub for Startups” and via Applyifi.com helps startups get actionable insights and inputs on their business plans. Started a printing business at when he was 17, and later was founding member of a CRM solutions company. Prajakt has spent over 10 years in the advertising industry with agencies like Grey, Capital and DMB&B. Prajakt was previously the Asia Director of TiE. Co-founded Orange Cross, a healthcare services company. Prajakt was head of operations of the Indian Angel Network, one of the largest angel investor groups in the world.

Mohan Krishnan

Mohan has over twenty-five years of experience in the research and consulting industry. His experience spans diverse sectors in the area of technology and marketing issues. He has advised private and public sector companies, associations, and forums in sectors such as Consumer goods, ICT, Energy, Environment, Logistics, Steel, Automotive and financial services markets. Mohan has contributed several articles and research papers on a wide range of subjects. He is also a regular speaker and a visiting faculty at IIT Bombay, TERI University and IIFT Delhi & Kolkata.
He started his career as an engineer in sustainable development sector at Development Alternatives, moved to consumer research area at IMRB International where he later specialized in technology research before moving to head a sister company, Henley Centre, a marketing consulting. He returned to IMRB to head BIRD, a B2B and Technology research unit at Mumbai before moving to Delhi to head Consumer quantitative and SRI between 2008-2010. He also headed the quality improvement function both as an employee and as consultant between 2011-present before starting his NGO in education sector. He’s also advisory boards of a few start-ups: The Peninsula Centre – a think tank in using Geo-located information ,The Peninsula Studios and Buysmaart.com/Enixta. In addition, he’s a director at Centre for Marketing in Emerging Economies, IIM Lucknow.He is an MBA in Marketing Management from FMS & B.Tech. from IIT Delhi.

Rakesh Bhartia

Rakesh BhartiaCEO - India Glycols Limited

Rakesh is CEO at India Glycols Limited (IGL) since August 2009, a Rs.3500 Crores (Approx $550mn) company having the distinction of being the largest Company in the world producing a wide variety of Green Speciality Chemicals from Molasses and Ethanol. In addition, IGL is also engaged in the business of Natural Gums, Industrial Gases, Nutraceutical Herbal Extraction and Potable Alcohol. Mr. Bhartia prior to joining IGL, was CEO of Bajaj Hindustan Ltd., India’s largest manufacturer of sugar and ethanol. He started his career in 1992 with ICICI Securities & Finance Company Ltd (a JV between ICICI and JP Morgan). He has worked in various Banks including Standard Chartered Grindlays Bank, Bank of America and Rabobank. He has wide exposure to investment banking, corporate finance and commercial banking related activities.

Mr. Rakesh Bhartia is also the Immediate Past President of Indian Chemical Council (ICC), the apex national body representing all branches of the Chemical Industry in India. Mr. Rakesh Bhartia, by qualification is a Chartered Accountant, Company Secretary and Cost Accountant.

Vijay Athreye

Vijay.S.AthreyeCo-founder - FINISH program, Chairman (FSMC)

Vijay cofounded the FINISH program in 2009 with Dutch Government assistance and has since been a member of its Program Management Board. FINISH essentially aims at bringing in elements of Financial Inclusion and healthcare to promote and implement development initiatives in
Household Sanitation in Rural India.The program has now also been extended to Kenya and Vijay serves on its board as well. The FINISH program led to the founding of FINISH Society ( a not for profit NGO ) . More than half a million household sanitation assets have been facilitated under the FINISH program in
India. In the year 2014 a for profit organization called FSMC of which Vijay is the chairman was registered to serve the commercial needs of development vide development franchisees in India .
Earlier , Vijay conceptualized and remained at the helm of the Rural Micro insurance initiative at TATA-AIG Life Insurance till he left them in the year 2010 as VP and Head of Rural and Microinsurance..Vijay areas of interest include Rural development with emphasis on Sustainability, Public Private Partnerships
and Financial Inclusion.
Vijay holds a bachelors Degree in Chemical Engineering ,a Masters Degree in Business Administration, and is a Fellow of the Life Management Institute (LOMA - USA) as well as an Associate in Customer Service. Before his tryst with the Insurance Industry Vijay ’s services have been deployed in the fields of Turnkey Projects in Thermal Power Plants ,Wind Farm development, capital equipments, automobiles, consumer durables, charter aviation and Sales force automation software.

Santosh Desai

Santosh DesaiManaging Director & CEO, Future Brands Limited

Santosh Desai is a columnist, media critic and the author of ‘Mother Pious Lady: Making Sense of Everyday India’. In his professional life, Santosh is the MD & CEO of Futurebrands, a brand and consumer consultancy company and has previously headed an advertising agency. Santosh’s principal area of interest lies in examining the evolving nature of consumer culture in India. Thought leader in understanding the relationship between culture and brands and the consumer as a product of his or her cultural context Author of ‘City City Bang Bang’, a weekly column in The Times of India.